Modular heaters that assemble into the base of containers to heat food and beverage contents contained therein to serving temperature are known in the art. For example, issued patents and pending patent applications describe a compact modular heating element that inserts into the base of a beverage can or other container with technology related to the present invention, including: U.S. Pat. No. 8,864,924 titled “Solid-State Thermite Composition Based Heating Device;” U.S. Pat. No. 9,055,841 titled “Package Heating Apparatus;” U.S. Pat. No. 8,555,870 titled “Package Heating Device and Chemical Compositions for Use Therewith;” U.S. Pat. No. 9,500,389 titled “Thermally Regulated Self-Heating Containers;” and U.S. patent application Ser. No. 12,570,822 titled “Package Heating Apparatus and Chemical Composition,” all of which share at least one inventor in common with the present application.
These heater elements efficiently store chemical energy in contained solid state chemical reactants and are simply activated by a user to promptly release thermal energy. The thermal energy is transmitted through the wall of an immediately adjacent container to uniformly heat the interior contents. The features and functionality of the heaters described in the foregoing patents and applications are incorporated herein.
A compact modular solid state heater can be the engine of fast, efficient package heating. For facile commercial adaption, this component is best integrated into an end to end product solution that can readily be delivered to consumers. As the end-user of the product, consumer requirements may include: ease of use, reliability, safety, and cost. These and other essential functionalities should be embedded in the heated package, and the consumer user interface (CUI) so as to create a positive user experience.
Intermediate stakeholders in the complete end to end self-heating package solution include the brand companies identified on the containers to distinguish and market the product that incorporate the technology into their product portfolio, as well as the fillers and co-packers who must process and assemble the packaged product. Brands, in addition to satisfying their consumers' needs are also concerned with flexibility and ease of implementing the technology. For example: can the technology be applied to multiple package sizes and shapes, is it customizable for specific heating regimens (portion type and size, end temperature, speed of heating), etc.? In order to enhance their image with consumers, they also seek product implementations that enable differentiation and compelling branding.
With respect to commercial implementation, brands, fillers, and co-packers desire a compatibly engineered manufacturing solution with minimal disruptive impact on their existing supply chain operations. Given that, for a commercial product, the complete self-heating package comprises additional components relative to non-self-heating forms, some practical means must be provided for installation of the heater and any ancillary components. And those means must work within the general framework of how things are done in conventional filling and packaging operations. An end to end self-heating package product solution that incorporates an understanding of the requirements for package filling and assembly operations will streamline manufacturing while reducing capital needs and production cost.
There is a need, therefore, for a comprehensive end to end self-heating package solution that addresses the needs of fillers, brands, and consumers. The solution must provide product functionality to maximize the consumer experience while minimizing disruptive features and processes to maximize performance and efficiency in commercial implementation. The consolidated elements of the product solution must be integrated with conventional packaging technology to be experienced by a consumer via a novel, intuitive CUI.